Nocturnal Hypoglycemia Often Occurs in Children With T1DM

THURSDAY, May 19, 2016 (HealthDay News) -- Nocturnal hypoglycemia frequently occurs in children with type 1 diabetes, and is mainly asymptomatic, according to a research letter published online May 13 in Diabetes Care.

Sara Bachmann, Ph.D., from the University Children's Hospital Basel in Switzerland, and colleagues examined the frequency and duration of nocturnal hypoglycemia in children with diabetes. Glucose measurements were combined with accelerometry to examine the influence of physical activity. Complete data were available for 51 children with type 1 diabetes for more than six months. Continuous glucose monitoring was performed for six days and physical activity was recorded by accelerometry.

The researchers identified 128 episodes of nocturnal hypoglycemia, of which eight were symptomatic. One or more episodes of hypoglycemia occurred on 32.7 percent of nights; the duration of hypoglycemia ranged from 10 to 665 minutes, with 36 percent of episodes lasting less than one hour. There was a correlation for daytime physical activity with nocturnal hypoglycemia: one hour of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity increased the risk of nocturnal hypoglycemia by 58 percent (P = 0.009), while one hour of vigorous physical activity increased the risk by 82 percent (P = 0.01). Bedtime glucose of <6 mmol/L correlated with a 2.5-fold increase in the risk of nocturnal hypoglycemia.

"In children with diabetes, nocturnal hypoglycemia is very frequent, mostly asymptomatic, and often prolonged for hours," the authors write.